Restoring the village well

(Baonghean) -Along with restoring and renovating communal houses, temples and pagodas, recently many villages have worked together to rebuild village wells associated with the village name, returning the ancient beauty of old villages.

Rao village well (Hung Dao, Hung Nguyen) is located in the middle of the field.

Known as one of the five ancient villages of Hung Dao commune, Hung Nguyen, Ke Cai village still retains the beauty of a purely agricultural village. There are concrete roads, and although each house is spacious, it still retains its fences made of bamboo and green pineapple trees. At the end of April, walking in the middle of the green rice fields in bloom, Mr. Le Quyet Thang (50 years old), a son of Ke Cai village, excitedly led us to visit the village well located next to his field. Unable to hide his joy, Mr. Thang said: This is the fifth well in Hung Dao commune that has been restored by the people in the past 2-3 years with the desire to be both a relic and a place where people can get water to use like in the past. The well in Ke Cai village has its own story that no one can explain, that story must be known to the elderly people of the village.

And we went to Mr. Phan Van Tu (this year is approximately 80 years old) but he still looked very clear-headed. When he heard about the village well, Mr. Tu immediately said: Ke Cai village well was built in 1200, by Mr. Phan Phuoc Trieu - the ancestor of the Phan family to help the villagers have water for daily use. After the well was built, not only Ke Cai village but also many people in other areas came to fetch water. The well water was clear, cool, and sweet, so the households in the village often used it to cook sticky rice, cook green tea, or make soy sauce... At that time, he still remembered, every time his mother went to fetch water, she had to call him to go with her, because the well was big, and was in the middle of the field, surrounded by many ancient banyan trees that were very sacred...

Every time he went to fetch water with his mother, he was very happy because he could pick banyan leaves to make buffaloes. At that time, children did not have toys like today, so the most favorite game was to use leaves to make animal shapes. When he grew up, joined the army, and returned to the village, Ke Cai well was also the place where he dated his first love. For generations in Ke Cai village, the village well was an indispensable part of life. The special thing that many old people in Ke Cai village cannot explain to this day is that since the well was built, whenever the well water turned the color of crab bricks, it was as if there was something unpleasant in the village.

Therefore, in 2003, the whole village met, discussed and decided to restore and dredge the well. Because this was a voluntary work, everyone contributed as much as they could, those who had contributed labor, those who had contributed money, in just 2 weeks, thanks to the consensus of the whole village, plus the participation of the Women's Union and the Youth Union, the Ke Cai village well was back to its former state. Currently, Hung Dao Kindergarten is still using Ke Cai village well water to cook food for the students. Or when making soy sauce, the women, mothers and sisters in the village go to the well to fetch water, because according to Mrs. Nguyen Thi Lien (60 years old), if making soy sauce using village well water will have a distinctive, fragrant and delicious taste, completely different from using well water or tap water.

Along with Ke Cai village, other villages in the commune such as Ke Sia, Rao village, Don Nhuong, Ke Thai, Trinh village have also restored the old village well because they believe that the village well is like the dragon vein of the whole village, so mobilizing people's strength to participate is very convenient and pleasing to the people. Mr. Thai Van Tung (75 years old), a resident of Rao village, said: Although not said, in the complex of beautiful village culture, the village well is always attached to many people of that village. It is the place where we often follow our mothers to fetch water every summer afternoon, the place where boys tease girls, the place where young people meet, the place where women and mothers exchange, interact, and talk about their children and family every time they go to the well to fetch water...

The well of Rao village, Mr. Tung's hometown, is located in the complex of Rao village temple and tomb relics - a place to worship the village's tutelary god. The temple and tomb have been restored by the people and are being submitted to the competent authorities for approval as historical and cultural relics. However, during the research process, we saw the concern of many people that the old village name should be returned, called Rao village, Ke Sia, Ke Cai... instead of hamlet 5, hamlet 6, hamlet 7 as it is now. Because names like Ke Sia, Ke Cai, Don Nhuong... are all associated with the story and roots of the village. For example, Don Nhuong village has a very unique voice that cannot be confused with other villages; Trinh village girls have beautiful singing voices, are famous for being the most beautiful girls in the region; Ke Sia villagers are talented at telling jokes; Ke Cai village has a traditional dish called cha giam that no other village can make as deliciously...

The banyan tree - well - communal house yard are typical and familiar images of every ancient Vietnamese village. The well is the main source of drinking water for the villagers, so its preservation and protection are given special attention. According to ancient regulations, anyone who pollutes the village well will be severely punished. Because of its important role, the village well is always placed in a sacred cultural complex, attached to a pagoda or communal house. However, during the period of 1955 - 1985, in our province in particular and the whole country in general, there was a movement to destroy temples, pagodas, and fill wells. After a while, many spiritual elements were restored, and many places rebuilt communal houses, pagodas, and wells. Villages also proposed regulations for better well management.

Nowadays, people restore wells not for the purpose of using water as before but mainly to restore the spiritual and humanistic values ​​of the nation. In Khanh Trung village - Nghi Khanh, one of the first cultural villages of Nghi Loc district, Mr. Vo Manh Khoi (70 years old) - who was the Secretary of Khanh Trung Party Cell for many years said: "Old people like us are very afraid that time will gradually destroy the cultural values ​​of the village, afraid that the bustling life of today's young generation will not be able to preserve what their ancestors left behind. Therefore, the village has determined to restore the old Mo Phuong well with socialized funds, contributing to returning the space of the Vietnamese countryside. That is also a way for the previous generation to teach the younger generation the precious values ​​of village culture". Currently, Mo Phuong well of Khanh Trung village is located right next to the newly opened, spacious and clean inter-hamlet road. In addition to restoring the well, people also built a monument telling the story of Mo Phuong well. The well grounds are extended and surrounded by green bamboo groves.

The restoration of village wells by people everywhere in the province is a commendable and widespread work, on the one hand to preserve the ancient village culture, on the other hand, village wells will also become relic sites that local people always want to visit. However, to promote the value of village well relics, it is thought that authorities at all levels also need to have mechanisms and policies to support localities in restoring village wells. The important thing is that after restoration, it is necessary to propagate for people to promote and preserve the cultural value of village wells. Moreover, there should be plans to preserve ancient village wells. Along with ancient communal houses and sacred pagodas, village wells have contributed an important part in building village cultural spaces, becoming attractive destinations for tourists who want to learn and explore the beauty of ancient Vietnamese villages when coming to Nghe An.

Thanh Thuy